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KINGDOM BIBLE STUDIES

“Teaching the things concerning the kingdom of God...”

THE GLORY OF GOD

Introduction

Originally published June 1970, but modified per instructions found with original

“O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is; to see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary” (Ps 63:1-2). “Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen” (Ps 72:18-19).

What is glory? What is its shape, size, and color? Perhaps you feel that you have never seen it, you feel that it is spiritual, and therefore cannot be seen. Not so, my friend, it can be seen. How my heart thrills to see the glory! The literal meaning of the Hebrew word for glory is weight or substance; worth, dignity and honor; splendor and majesty. In the eyes of men this literal meaning frequently lent itself to the idea that a person possessing glory was laden (heavy) with the substance and honor of this world. Jacob’s flock was his “glory” (Gen. 31:1). The Assyrians’ power was their “glory” (Isa. 8:7). Joseph’s high position was his “glory” (Gen. 45:13). The Israelites thought that they were living to the glory of God by acquiring a weight of material wealth, power, and position. Today, a number of “prosperity preachers” have the very same idea! They think God is glorified in the heaping of the weight and substance of worldly possessions and earthly blessings upon His people. But the prophet Jeremiah told God’s people that they should not consider such human values their glory. Rather, they were to glory in the fact that they knew the Lord, whose glory was His kindness, justice, and righteousness!

When the word was applied to God, it was meant to bring out the weightiness of God’s attributes. All Bible dictionaries agree that “glory” is “the exhibition and display of the excellence of the subject to which it is ascribed.” Thus, in respect to God, it is the visible manifestation of His attributes — His nature, character, power, love, justice, righteousness, etc. (Jer. 9:24). The glory of God is the visible manifestation of WHAT GOD IS. The glory of God is God REVEALED, God PUT ON DISPLAY, the EMMANATION OF HIS ESSENCE, all that God is brought into demonstration on the visible plane so men can perceive what God is like. That is what men saw when they beheld the glory of God! God is love, God is light, God is truth, God is peace, God is power, God is life, God is righteousness. When God brings what He is into expression so we can either see or perceive it, we then “behold HIS GLORY.” It was with this same sense of glory that Jesus spoke about how He would bring glory to the Father. Jesus would not acquire worldly wealth, fame, power, or position. On the contrary, His life would be “heavy” with the glorious heavenly qualities of love, mercy, goodness, purity, compassion, righteousness, wisdom, and spiritual power. And that is the call and aim of every son of God.

THE SOURCE OF ALL GLORY

“That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of HIM” (Eph. 1:17). All glory originates in God our Father. Even as He is the FATHER of our Lord Jesus Christ, He is also the FATHER of glory! He is thus the source of glory as it emanates and issues forth from Him!

A PARTIAL REVELATION OF GOD'S GLORY

In the Old Testament dispensation God gave only a partial revelation of Himself. Moses is the one Old Testament character who represents the Old Covenant. In Ex. 33:18, Moses requests of the Lord: “I beseech Thee, show me Thy glory.” God answered that He would cause all His goodness to pass before Moses and that He would declare His name (nature, being) unto him. “But,” God said, “Thou canst NOT see My FACE... behold there is a place by Me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: and it shall come to pass, while My glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with My hand as I pass by: and I will take away Mine hand, and thou shalt SEE MY BACK PARTS: but MY FACE SHALL NOT BE SEEN.” Here God is proclaiming the great truth that under the Old Covenant He only gave a partial revelation of Himself. Men were able to catch only a faint glimpse of what God is really like. He did not fully disclose Himself. Therefore, under the Old Covenant, man's revelation of God FELL SHORT of the fullness. There was a LACK. Paul wrote, “For all have sinned and come SHORT of the glory of God.” In the Old Covenant God only revealed the FORM of Himself, the FORM of truth, the FORM of His own nature, and this produced the LAW — the external legal code void of the Spirit of Life! The FORM of truth always falls just a little short of the glory. A doctrine or a ritual, a commandment or a law — this is not sufficient to the task of covering the nakedness which has been exposed through the fall where men lost the glory of God!

JESUS CHRIST IS THE FULL REVELATION OF GOD'S GLORY

“In the Being was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) FULL of grace and truth. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him” (Jn. 1:1-2,14,18). The Amplified Bible renders verse 18 thus: “No man has ever seen God at any time; the only unique Son, the only begotten God, Who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him — He has revealed Him, brought Him out where He can be seen; He has made Him known!” Note the marginal reference in the Scofield Bible. The Greek rendering is: “The only begotten Son hath led Him forth, that is, INTO FULL REVELATION.” Before Jesus came no man had ever truly seen God. Moses, and the Covenant He established, represented only a foggy external idea of what God is like. But then God took ALL HE IS and embodied it in the person of His Son and sent Him into the world.

The apostle Paul says in I Tim. 3:16: “Great and important and weighty, we confess, is the hidden truth — the mystic secret — of godliness. He (God) WAS MADE VISIBLE IN HUMAN FLESH” (Amplified Bible). John tells us that “the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld HIS GLORY.” When Jesus Christ came into the world He was the embodiment of God — not another partial revelation of God — but the full and complete and total unveiling of ALL GOD IS. Col. 1:15,19 says: “Now He is the EXACT LIKENESS of the unseen God — the visible representation of the invisible — for it has pleased the Father that all the divine fullness — the sum total of the divine perfection, powers and attributes should DWELL IN HIM PERMANENTLY” (Amplified Bible). There is no more beautiful picture of this great truth than that set forth in Heb. 1:1-3: “In many separate revelations — each of which set forth a portion of the Truth — and in different ways God spoke of old... but in the last of these days He has spoken to us in the person of a Son... He is the SOLE EXPRESSION of the glory of God — and He is the perfect imprint of God's nature” (Amplified Bible). No wonder Jesus could say: “If you had known Me — had learned to recognize Me — you would also have known My Father. From now on you know Him and have SEEN HIM. Philip said to Him, “Lord show us the Father — cause us to see the Father... then we shall be satisfied.” Jesus replied, “Have I been with all of you for so long a time and do you not recognize and know Me yet, Philip? Any one who has seen Me HAS SEEN THE FATHER” (Amplified Bible).

When God revealed Himself to Moses of old He caused all His glory to pass by but Moses did not see all of God's glory for he was not permitted to see God's FACE. But in II Cor. 4:6 we read: “For God, Who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in THE FACE OF JESUS CHRIST.” As we are enabled by the Spirit of God to behold the FACE of Jesus Christ we look upon that GLORY OF GOD that was withheld from Moses! God has shined light into our hearts that by the Spirit we may experience the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus. There is, therefore, one way only to SEE and KNOW the Father — and that is through intimate fellowship and vital union with Jesus. Jesus is the way to the Father. In this last hour God is proclaiming by the Spirit to His end-time body the great truth and reality of our coming into full Sonship to the Father. So let us, in and by the Spirit, ever behold the face of the Son of God — for in it is the revelation of the glory of God!

THE EXPANDED REVELATION OF GOD'S GLORY

It is the Father's eternal purpose to EXPAND the full revelation of Himself which He has given in Jesus Christ. An important scripture on this is II Cor. 3:18: “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, ARE CHANGED INTO THE SAME IMAGE from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” As we are changed into that same image of glory the revelation of God's glory is thus expanded and projected into further dimensions of expression.

With this in view the scripture states of Jesus: “Wherefore when He cometh into the world, He saith, Sacrifice and offering Thou wouldest not, but a BODY HAST THOU PREPARED ME” (Heb. 10:5). What resources of riches are contained in this one short verse, and especially in the statement, “A BODY hast Thou prepared Me.” To speak of the flesh-body of Jesus, that body which was born of the virgin Mary, brings reference to that which was given in sacrifice. Thus HE “was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:7-8). “God sending His Own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh” (Rom. 8:3). “Who needeth not daily to offer up sacrifice first for His Own sins, and then for the people’s: for this He did once, when He offered up Himself” (Heb. 7:27). And though He accomplished all this, yet He said, “Sacrifice and offering THOU WOULDEST NOT!” There was something else — something greater and higher — which God desired to fulfill through and in Jesus Christ! That there is yet a further meaning indicated by the words, “A BODY hast Thou prepared Me,” is readily evident from the fact that it was not sacrifice and offering which most concerned God!

The Spirit gives clarity in this regard in I Cor. 12:12-14: “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: SO ALSO IS CHRIST.” Contrary to popular teaching, Christ is NOT one person, but many persons — and yet He IS ONE PERSON — each individual member of that body constituting a “member” of His “body.” Ponder for a moment that which pertains to the BODY OF CHRIST. The eternal GOD was embodied and revealed in the person of the Son of God, Jesus Christ. But it was never God’s intention to bring forth only one Son. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places IN CHRIST: According as He hath chosen us IN HIM before the foundation of the world... Having predestinated US UNTO THE ADOPTION (placement) OF CHILDREN (Sons) by Christ Jesus unto Himself... wherein He hath made us accepted IN THE BELOVED” (Eph. 1:3-6). It was God’s purpose, before the foundation of the world, to bring forth a vast company of Sons. God planned for US! Talk about “planned parenthood!” But OUR Sonship is dependent upon the Spirit of THE SON, the pre-existent Word, indwelling us. This truth is clearly seen in Gal. 4:4-7: “But when the fullness of time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman… that WE might receive the adoption (placement) of Sons. And because YE ARE SONS, God hath sent forth the SPIRIT OF HIS SON into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore thou art no more a servant but a Son.” It is the “Spirit of HIS SON” which has been sent into our hearts. Those who are Sons of God are in all reality an EXTENSION and PROJECTION of the incarnation of God in Christ! Thus it is that CHRIST is no longer ONE (Jesus) but MANY — and this is indeed the further meaning of the statement, “A BODY hast Thou prepared Me.”

Paul speaks of this BODY prepared for the Christ and says: “NOW YE ARE THE BODY of Christ, and members in particular” (I Cor. 12:27). And again: “So we, being many, ARE ONE BODY IN CHRIST, and every one members one of another” (Rom. 12:5). “Know ye not that your bodies are the MEMBERS OF CHRIST? Shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid” (I Cor. 6:15). “Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh FOR HIS BODY'S SAKE, which is the church” (Col. 1:24). “NOW YE ARE THE BODY OF CHRIST, and members in particular.” For years we have been taught that the church is the “mystical” body of Christ. Mystical means “symbolic or allegorical.” Webster defines an allegory as something which is NOT REAL within itself, something visionary, such as a fable or parable. What a gross insult it is to God and to our Lord Jesus Christ to say that the church is the “mystical” body of Christ — that Christ’s body upon earth is merely an allegory, a symbol, a fable, a parable, with no reality of itself! The testimony of men is that the church is the “mystical body” of Christ. But the testimony of the Spirit of God is: “Now Y-E A-R-E T-H-E B-O-D-Y OF CHRIST!” A BODY hast Thou prepared Me.”

How significant, then, is Paul's statement to the Ephesians: “And He has... appointed Him the universal and supreme Head of the church (a headship exercised throughout the church), which IS HIS BODY, the FULLNESS of Him Who fills all in all — for in THAT BODY lives the FULL MEASURE of Him Who makes everything complete, and Who fills everything everywhere with Himself” (Eph. 1:22-23, Amplified Bible). I cannot emphasize too strongly that the New Testament revelation is that Jesus is not all of Christ. Christ means THE ANOINTED. Christ is not one person, but a corporate body of Sons of God. Jesus is one member of that Anointed Body... the HEAD!

“He is also the HEAD of HIS BODY, the church; seeing He is the beginning, the first-born from among the dead, so that He alone in everything and in every respect might occupy the CHIEF PLACE — stand first and be PRE-EMINENT” (Col. 1:18, Amplified Bible).

NOTE: There are those who erroneously teach that it is the pre-existent Christ, the eternal Word, which is Head of the body. But the scriptures are plain that it is the resurrected and glorified man Christ Jesus who is the Head. It is the SPIRIT of Christ, the eternal pre-existent Word, which fills the whole many-membered body, Head and body, Jesus and us, so that we indeed become the “fullness” or “completion” of HIM. Some insist that the resurrected man Jesus Christ will henceforth only be revealed in the composite body of His saints. But I wonder, to what form, image, or likeness shall THEIR PRESENT FLESH BODY BE CHANGED INTO, if Jesus does not yet also possess a body of His Own. If the man Christ Jesus has lost HIS INDIVIDUAL IDENTITY, then perhaps WE who are members in particular may also lose OUR individual identity! But such is not the case. Jesus will forever retain His individual identity as HEAD of this corporate, many-membered CHRIST-BODY. We also shall eternally retain our individual identities as individual MEMBERS of this BODY — ALL (Jesus and us) filled with the FULL MEASURE of the eternal, incorruptible WORD OF GOD!

THE END-TIME REVELATION OF GOD’S GLORY

The ultimate and fully-expanded revelation of Jesus Christ shall come to pass in the end-time. “And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. For the vision is yet for an APPOINTED TIME, but AT THE END it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry... for the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the GLORY OF THE LORD, as the waters cover the sea” (Hab. 2:2-3,14). This scripture reveals the great truth that God has purposed, in this end-time, to reveal the greatness of His glory throughout the entire earth. The Spirit indicates through Habakkuk that God has AN APPOINTED TIME in which He shall literally FILL the earth with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord. He also shows that that appointed time is at THE END — the END-TIME! Isaiah said, “And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together” (Isa. 40:5). This is without doubt one of the most significant prophecies in the scriptures. The glory of God has been revealed in diverse manner, at diverse times, unto diverse peoples, but never yet in history has the glory of the Lord been so revealed that ALL FLESH HAS SEEN IT TOGETHER. But that it is indeed God’s unalterable purpose to so reveal His glory is evidenced by the statement: “For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it!” We have seen from Habakkuk that this universal manifestation and revelation of God’s glory shall take place in the END-TIME.

It is evident that when Jesus came two thousand years ago as a revelation of God’s glory He did not fulfill the above prophecy concerning ALL FLESH seeing the glory of the Lord. Let us note some important facts found in Jn. 1:14: “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” In this verse John tells us two significant things about the revelation of the glory of God in Jesus Christ when He walked on earth: (1) The Word was made flesh and dwelt among US. The US refers at most to the nation of Israel, for Jesus during His ministry never crossed beyond the borders of Israel. Jesus said plainly, “I am not sent but to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (2) And WE beheld His glory... The WE refers specifically to John and the other close disciples of the Lord. Peter confessed the glory of Christ’s Sonship but most Jews saw Him only as a prophet, teacher, or a good man and therefore did not behold His glory “as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” However, in Jn. 2:11 we read: “This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and MANIFESTED FORTH HIS GLORY; and His disciples believed on Him.” In Lk. 9:27-36 we read that when Jesus was on the Mount of Transfiguration “Peter and they that were with him SAW HIS GLORY... and there came a voice saying, This is My beloved Son: Hear Him.” So it is that the fullness of the glory of God was revealed in Jesus, but the scope of the revelation of that glory was limited in the extreme — only among the people of Israel. The time was not yet for the glory of the Lord to be revealed and ALL FLESH SEE IT TOGETHER. “He came unto His own (Israel) and His own received Him not” (Jn. 1:11). The greater revelation of His glory would be reserved for the TIME OF THE END!

God has purposed to fully and eternally reveal His glory to the whole creation in the person of a many-membered SON — the body of Christ. The reason the glory of God was not revealed unto all flesh two thousand years ago through Jesus is that Jesus was only one person — one Son — and therefore could only be in one place at a time. He was limited by the confines of the humanity He took upon Himself. We can see, therefore, the marvelous wisdom of God in planning from the beginning to EXPAND the revelation of Himself He would give in Jesus Christ; to EXTEND the INCARNATION of God in a great company of Sons of God; thus revealing the fullness of Himself in a many-membered body of Christ. Many believe that it is the bodily return of our Lord through which God shall reveal His glory to all flesh. Jesus SHALL return, but He shall not come as the sole, singular revelation of God. He shall return as the GLORIFIED HEAD OF A GLORIOUS BODY which has grown up spiritually, having moved beyond weakness and immaturity into the measure of the stature of the FULLNESS OF CHRIST. In that day the entire CHRIST-BODY shall fulfill the prophecy of Isaiah 40:5. Here are a few scriptures which confirm this marvelous truth:

“And now, Father, glorify Me along with yourself... to such majesty and honor... as I had with You before the world existed. I have given to THEM THE GLORY AND HONOR which you have given Me, that they may be one even as we are one: I in them and You in Me, in order that they may become one... that the world may know that You have loved them even as You have loved Me” (Jn. 17:5,22—23, Amplified Bible).

“That you would walk worthy of God, Who hath called you unto HIS KINGDOM AND GLORY” (I Thes. 2:12).

“The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the GLORY THAT SHALL BE REVEALED” (I Peter 5:1).

“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, CROWNED WITH GLORY AND HONOR... For it became Him, for Whom are all things, and by Whom are all things, in BRINGING MANY SONS UNTO GLORY, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For both He that sanctifieth and they which are sanctified ARE ALL OF ONE: for which cause He is not ashamed to call them brethren” (Heb. 2:9-11).

“For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the GLORY THAT SHALL BE REVEALED IN US. For the earnest expectation of the creation waiteth for the manifestation of the SONS OF GOD” (Rom. 8:18-19).

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the GLORY of the Lord IS RISEN UPON THEE. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and HIS GLORY SHALL BE SEEN UPON THEE. And the Gentiles (nations) shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising” (Isa. 60:1-3).

“And the Gentiles shall SEE thy righteousness, and all kings THY GLORY” (Isa. 62:2).

“Whereunto He called you by our gospel, TO THE OBTAINING OF THE GLORY of our Lord Jesus Christ” (II Thes. 2:14).

“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the Sons of God. And if children, then heirs; heirs of God and JOINT HEIRS WITH CHRIST; if so be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also GLORIFIED TOGETHER” (Rom. 8:14,17).

“And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall BE REVEALED from heaven… when He shall come TO BE GLORIFIED IN HIS SAINTS, and to be admired IN ALL THEM that believe in that day... that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified IN you and ye IN HIM” (II Thes. 1:7,10,12).

“Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh FOR HIS BODY’S SAKE, which is the church: Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God; even the MYSTERY which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to His saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the GLORY of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is CHRIST IN YOU THE HOPE OF GLORY” (Col. 1:24-27).

God has a hope concerning His glory. God’s own hope is that He shall be able to fully reveal HIMSELF — HIS GLORY — to all men... to all flesh. God now has the hope of fulfilling this desire. He is pinning the fulfillment of His hope on the formation and revelation of Christ IN HIS BODY. Christ IN YOU is the HOPE OF GLORY! The word “you” is in the plural in the Greek. It means all of you, that is, the entire body. It is not within us as individuals that Christ shall be fully manifested, but in the whole composite body. In Eph. 4:11-16 it is stated that God has purposed to perfect His saints until His body comes unto (1) A perfect man (2) The measure of the stature of the FULLNESS OF CHRIST. Hence, we see that the plan of God is to ultimately bring His true body to the point of becoming ONE PERFECT MAN. It is that one perfect many-membered man which shall embody the fulness of God’s glory which shall be revealed so that all flesh shall see it together.

In Rom. 3:23 we read: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” That it has eternally been God’s purpose to indwell and express Himself through HUMAN SONS is here made plain. Not only have all men sinned, but all have come short of God’s GLORY! So sin not only produced death and the curse, but it robbed man from moving in the purpose of God for him to be the embodiment and expression of the GLORY OF GOD. But now, through Jesus, the Sons of God are to be brought back into that glory that fallen man has so woefully fallen short of.

There is an interesting statement in Isaiah 42:8: “I am the Lord: that is My name: AND MY GLORY WILL I NOT GIVE TO ANOTHER.” Identification IN CHRIST is the only means of sharing the glory of God. God has declared that He will not share His glory with another. Some time ago, while reflecting upon this scripture, the thought came to me, “Are we not being somewhat presumptuous to believe that God would share His glory with US? All this talk about Sonship... the throne of Christ... ruling and reigning over the whole vast limitless universe of God... is this not claiming too much?” Gently the Spirit of God reminded me, “Son, I will not share My glory with another — but — YOU ARE NOT ANOTHER! You are bone of My bones, flesh of My flesh, you are My very own Son... I have begotten you! He that is joined to the Lord is ONE SPIRIT. You are one with Me! Therefore, I WILL share My glory with you! (See Eph. 5:23-32). It is not by virtue of any goodness or worthiness on our part; it is all by His matchless grace!

NOTE: In James 2:1 and I Cor. 2:8 Jesus is called the “LORD of glory.” “This means that although it is the Father’s will to unveil the fullness of His glory and majesty through the many-membered body of Christ — Jesus is still HEAD and LORD of all who share His glory in Sonship. See Rev. 1:5-6; Rev. 5:9-10; Rev. 19:11-16; Rev. 17:14; Heb. 2:10.

THE NEW JERUSALEM — GOD’S ULTIMATE GLORY

When John saw the Holy City descending down from God, the Spirit was giving him a vision of the bride of Christ as she would be in her perfection. If we follow John in the magnificent view that was given him of the Holy City, and study the various parts of the City as John saw them in the vision, and if we let the Spirit of God show us the spiritual realities of which these parts or portions of the Holy City are symbols, then it shall be revealed to our hearts how true it is that the Holy City is the Bride in her perfection. Until our spiritual minds are able to grasp the truth that the body of Christ is the temple of God and that every room and mansion of that temple is a living son of God, a literal habitation of God through the Spirit; and until we understand that the city of God is the bride of Christ, and that the stones of that City are all living stones, as Christ Jesus Himself is a living stone and the only foundation that can be laid, we have understood nothing at all. The book of Revelation shows the development of this Bride-City from glory to glory. Each view is a fresh and further comprehension of the grandeur of the purposes of God for all who are called to the High Calling of God in Christ Jesus. The total victory for all the elect is detailed in all its glorious and eternal reality. This is the beauty of the Church Triumphant! This is that glorious church without spot or wrinkle. It is so great and mighty! It stands throughout the ages to come clothed in the awesome majesty of the glory of the Almighty!

GOD’S GREATEST GLORY

In the light of the truth that the glory of God is the manifestation of WHAT GOD IS, there is a most interesting and significant statement in Exodus chapter thirty-three. This concerns GOD’S GREATEST GLORY. “Now therefore I pray Thee, if I have found grace in Thy sight, show me now Thy way, that I may know Thee, that I may find grace in Thy sight: and consider that this nation is Thy people. And the Lord said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in My sight, and I know thee by name. And he said, I beseech Thee, SHOW ME THY GLORY. And He (God) said, I will make ALL MY GOODNESS pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name (nature) of the Lord before thee; and will be GRACIOUS to whom I will be gracious, and will SHOW MERCY on whom I will show mercy” (Ex. 33:13,17-19). Note Moses’ request: “Show me THY GLORY.'' In this connection Moses also requested: “Show me now THY WAY, that I may KNOW THEE.” In other words, “Show me your nature, what you are really like, unveil your real self to me!” Moses yearned to behold God’s greatest glory — the revelation and manifestation of what God is really like in His person — His nature. In response to this urgent request the Lord replied, “I will make ALL MY GOODNESS pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name (nature) of the Lord before thee!” “The glory which passed before Moses was the revelation of the NATURE of God... and that nature is described as “ALL THE GOODNESS” of the Lord. God is proclaiming that His greatest glory IS HIS GOODNESS. Infinite goodness is the very essence of God’s character.

David beheld this truth in the Spirit and cried out: “For the Lord is GOOD; His MERCY ENDURETH FOREVER!”(Ps. 100:5). Jesus was the embodiment of God's goodness. He never enforced the demands or penalty of the law. Said He, “Neither do I condemn thee: go and sin no more!” “Thy sins be forgiven thee: take up thy bed and walk!” “For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” “The Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.” To the thief: “This day shalt thou be with Me in paradise.” “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and power: Who went about doing GOOD, and healing ALL who were oppressed by the devil; for GOD WAS WITH HIM” (Acts 10:38). While living here on earth our Lord was extremely kind. He picked up little children and blessed them. He healed all who were suffering with pain. While relatives were weeping over dead loved ones, He raised four of them to life again. His kindness made an evangelist out of the wicked woman at the well (Jn. 4:29). Because Jesus really loved the weak, helpless creatures whom He had created, He wept over them, prayed for them and taught them continually. Except those religious Pharisees, Jesus never spoke one cross word to the unconverted masses. He was very tender and kind in all His dealings with men, even the most wicked among them. He sat at meat with the rich and ungodly and never upbraided them for their sins, shortcomings, and moral failures. His approach to them was very gentle, delicate, and considerate. Surely then, we are safer in His hands than anywhere else! The things He has in store for every one of us are far greater than we could plan for ourselves!

The Holy Spirit has taught me three things relative to the life of sonship. These three principles are expressed in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. First, Jesus never condoned sin. How do I know this? Because, when the woman caught in adultery was left before Him, He spoke prophetically and redemptively into her life, saying, “Go, and sin no more.” I believe she did just that! His words were spirit and life unto her, transforming and lifting her life. Jesus did not come to condone our fallen state and sinful conduct, He came to save us from it! He didn’t come to say, “I’m O.K., you’re O.K., everybody’s O.K.” Everybody is not O.K.! Jesus was often forgiving sin and then admonishing, “Go and sin no more lest a worse thing come upon you.” He perfectly understood the law of sowing and reaping, the law of sin and death, with its inherent process of judgment.

Hear me now! Secondly, Jesus never condemned the sinner! Never! His testimony was that “God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” Though Jesus never condoned sin, He never condemned the sinner! He didn’t go around reminding men what terrible sinners they were. Most men already knew that! He didn’t counsel them about all the bad they had done or were doing. He knew what was in man, He understood that people really, within their own human strength and nature, could not help what they were! They needed compassion, love, mercy, and deliverance — not condemnation! Never, in all His years of ministry, did He ever condemn even one sinner! Jesus could do something that very few of our modern fundamentalist and evangelical preachers can do — He could preach salvation without first informing his audience about how fallen, rotten, wicked, and despicable they were, and how hot was the hell that awaited them if they didn’t repent! He didn’t say, “Repent, or you’re going to eternal hell!” On the contrary, He said, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” “Repent — because I have something infinitely better prepared for you!” Isn’t it wonderful!

And when, in the closing pages of the book of Revelation, the Spirit of God reveals the ULTIMATE REVELATION OF GOD’S GLORY to all nations through the City of God, the Bride of Christ, what does God say through this many-membered body? “And the Spirit and the Bride say, COME. And let him that heareth say, COME. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, LET HIM TAKE OF THE WATER OF LIFE FREELY” (Rev. 22:17). For how long shall this cry continue? “And the nations of them that are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. And the gates of it SHALL NOT BE SHUT AT ALL BY DAY: for there shall be no night there” (Rev. 21:24-25). Those gates shall always be open... NEVER CLOSED! God’s grace and goodness and glory shall flow... and flow... and flow... until the last poor hungry and thirsty soul has come through its gates to partake of the GREATEST GLORY OF GOD — HIS GOODNESS!

J. PRESTON EBY

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